Will Paula Abdul Return for Idol Finale? ; Simon Bored By Idol

It’s no secret that the producers of American Idol like to keep the names of performers on finale night under wraps.

But two things are certain — Crystal Bowersox or Lee DeWyze will be crowned the season 9 champ on Wednesday, and fans will see the last of Simon Cowell before he jumps over to X Factor in 2011.

But a source tells PEOPLE that a special send-off planned for the cranky judge will feature some Idol alums, including a special appearance by Paula Abdul.

And among the superstars taking the stage? Watch for a great performance by Christina Aguilera.

The new Harry Potter Theme Park: We were there!


The first thing you should know about The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is that the Butterbeer tastes magical. It’s frothy, butterscotchy, and incredibly yummy, and it’s one of many details that make the theme park — part of Universal’s Islands of Adventure in Orlando (admission: $79 per day for adults, $69 for kids) — a transportive delight for Potter fanatics. The park’s grand opening is June 18, but EW was invited for a special early look on May 17. After passing the Hogwarts Express, guests should prepare to drop more than a few Galleons on Potterphernalia in the commercial area of Hogsmeade — from $15 for the Sneakoscopes at Zonko’s joke shop, to $300 for the Firebolt broomstick at Dervish and Banges magic shop. Thanks to close supervision by the Potter films’ design team, everything looks and feels precisely right, down to the absurdly high shelves and cramped, English-style layouts. In other words, expect some tight crowds.

AT&T's new early-termination fee for the iPhone: $325

A word of warning to AT&T subscribers who would switch carriers when the company's iPhone exclusivity deal with Apple finally ends: The cost of doing so will soon rise--substantially. Come June 1, AT&T is raising its early-termination fee on smartphones to $325 from $175.


The increase comes amid speculation that AT&T's iPhone-exclusivity deal with Apple is nearing its end. But a company representative tells me it has "nothing to do with the iPhone or any other device."

$325. That's a pretty steep increase from $175. Though to be fair, it's not quite as bad as the one already implemented by rival Verizon. In November, that carrier doubled its smartphone ETF from $175 to $350, a move AT&T was quick to cite as partial justification for its own decision.

Google TV: Who is the competition and what are they saying about it?


The Google TV has landed and is already sending ripples through the marketplace, but what about all the companies already blending internet and TV? Whether they are already planning to work with the new initiative (Rovi), even more firmly staking a claim on their existing technology and vision for the connected TV (Microsoft, Yahoo), sounding like it's an option for the future (Samsung, VIZIO, Boxee) or already working on their own Android on TV projects (People of Lava, MIPS) each one should tell a little bit about where this market is headed in the coming months and years. Read on for their statements -- and a quick breakdown of what each is bringing to the table in case you weren't already running a network cable to your HDTV years ago.

Jay and Show end their feud after 44 months

Hugging, shaking hands, high-fiving, exchanging phone numbers, and arranging to play basketball together, the “once best friends” kings of pop music Jay Chou and Show Luo finally end their feud. A few days ago, Jay appeared on the live recording of Show’s variety, “100% Entertainment.” An hour before and during the live show, they chatted for a little over an hour. The feud between these two music sensations was finally put to an end after three years and eight months.

Once good friends, Jay even wrote the hit song, “Self-Hypnosis,” for Show. But for a “woman,” their friendship turned sour. One explanation was that it was because Jay broke up with Jolin Tsai, due to Patty Hou, and Show chose to stand on Jolin’s side. Thus, their friendship slowly drifted apart. Another explanation was that it was because Jay thought it was Show who spread love rumors of him and Hebe. Although neither side clarified or confirmed any of these rumors, when Jay accepted Appledaily’s interview the year before, he mentioned that “a friend he has not kept in touch with for a long time” had done something very upsetting to him, which lead many to believe that this “friend” he mentioned was Show Luo.

S.H.E. Apply US Visa Without Make-up, Selina Passes With Her Famous Song

S.H.E will hold a concert in Taipei Arena next week. Two days ago they spent some time to apply US visas because they will hold a concert in Connecticut, USA in middle of June.

This is S.H.E's second time going to the US. Last time it was in Las Vegas in 2004. Someone said he saw S.H.E and a bunch of other people went to apply for US visa. The three didn't have any make-up on and were nice to others. Next month the group would hold two shows in Connecticut, Gary Chaw is their special performer. They can earn about millions NTD this time.

When talking with AIT officials, Ella and Hebe passed easily but Selina was asked several more questions. The officer didn't know her and asked what does she do. When he heard she is a singer, he also asked her what is her famous song, Selina answered "Superstar." Because it's "superstar," he didn't ask anymore questions.

ExoPC Gets Caught on Video, Still Features Windows 7 [Video]

We say that it still features Windows 7, because we’re shocked that this tablet can boot up as quickly as it does, considering it’s stuffed with a full Operating System. But, in all honesty, that’s just one reason why we’re so excited to see the ExoPC up and running, with a video that will make you want your own in no time. And while we know there’s plenty of other tablets out there, we hope that this one’s stayed on your radar, because it’s definitely worth the excitement.


The folks over at Blogue de Geek were lucky enough to get their hands on the new tablet, and their time with the device has resulted in some pleasurable responses. Basically, they’re impressed, and they were quick to point out that even if they are impressed, and even if the ExoPC is fun to hold and use, what they were using and holding was still just a prototype. So, consider us pretty interested about what the final build will bring to the market.

Motorola Droid Will Receive Android 2.2 in the Near Future

You have to love the careful wording of any company out there. But, to be honest, this one from Motorola seems to ring a little differently. Almost like a different tone. Maybe that’s just because we have way too much faith, or hope. Either way, we reached out to Motorola, looking for a comment pertaining to future updates to their devices and how that all relates to Android 2.2, or Froyo if you prefer. And believe it or not, it’s good news.

“We’re excited to see Google’s news of the next version of the Android operating system and look forward to integrating it on our Android-based devices as it’s made available to the open source community.”

While I can’t comment on specifics, we do expect DROID by Motorola users will receive Android 2.2 as a software upgrade in the near future.”

There’s something to take away from this right from the start. They’re looking forward to integrating it in their Android-based devices. Yes, this could be just the standard PR talk, and basically “beating around the bush,” but here we are again hoping beyond hope that it means the MOTOBLUR devices out there aren’t being left out to pasture.

What Really Happened to Megan Fox—and Why?

Was Megan Fox pushed? Or did she jump?

That's so Wednesday afternoon. See, there are at least a few new takes on how Transformers 3 came to be minus a leading hottie.

And the most eyebrow-raising says she and adversary Michael Bay were in it—get this—together.

"It was a two-way street," a source close to the situation tells E! News. "There has been tension for months. It's not really like he fired her, and it's not like she quit."

Except, that is, according to the official story—all two of them. Fox says she chose not to return. Paramount Pictures, as originally reported by Deadline Hollywood, says it elected not to bring her back.

E! News' source seems to say the truth is somewhere in the middle, with Fox ready to quit, and director Bay ready to find a new actress when one final blowup sealed the deal: "They both just finally got fed up with each other."

Lindsay Lohan: My Cocaine Photo Was "a Set Up"

Lindsay Lohan is crying foul over a new snapshot of her lounging an arm's length away from what appears to be cocaine.

First posted at TMZ, the photo, featuring the 23-year-old actress, several friends and lines of white powder, was taken at an after-hours party in Cannes, France. She partied in the French seaside town until 7:30 a.m. Friday, despite major legal troubles back at home.

When shown the photo by Radaronline.com, Lohan claimed to be shocked. "That's a set up," she retorted, without going into specifics. "That's so untrue."

A cocaine possession charge is the last thing Lohan needs right now. The star missed a progress report hearing in Los Angeles on Thursday; claiming her passport had been stolen, Lohan said she had been unable to leave France. (She told UsMagazine.com that her father, Michael, may have been behind the document's disappearance.)

Google, Apple, Jacob, And The Man In Black


ABC’s popular television show Lost comes to an end this weekend. This season has been largely about the backstory for why things are the way they are on the island. It’s a minor spoiler to say it, but I’m going to anyway — basically, it boils down to a war between two brothers, Jacob and the Man in Black. Growing up, the two brothers were very close but decisions each made, forced them apart. And once apart, a series of events occurred that showed them just how different they really were. Those two brothers remind me a lot of Google and Apple right now.

If there was any remaining doubt that Google and Apple were in the midst of an all-out war, yesterday erased all those doubts. Anyone who was sitting in the Google I/O keynote heard shot after shot taken against Apple and their closed iPhone platform. Some references were thinly veiled. Some were not. It was really quite remarkable to watch. And I loved every minute of it.

Google Begins Locking Down Search With SSL Encryption

Online privacy seems to be at the top of everyones’ minds these days. Facebook, Google, and Blippy have all had high-profile privacy lapses in recent weeks — the problem seems to be getting worse, rather than better. Today, Google is starting a new project in an attempt to show their commitment to security — they’re adding SSL encryption to Google.com itself.

Now, to be clear, this isn’t on by default. To use this beta product, you have to visit https://www.google.com — the “s” is the key there, that’s how you know it’s secure. When you do this, both your search terms and search results will be encrypted as they travel across networks. This makes it much harder for third-parties to intercept them.

Jay Chou thinks speculations made by model is ridiculous

Taiwanese superstar Jay Chou rebuts small-time model’s revelation of a rendezvous in his secret room and dismisses it as nonsensical

Online gaming model Honey Chen is desperately trying to be known as one of the "J (Jay's) girls". She recently revealed on Taiwanese variety show, Gossip Queen's Studio, that Taiwanese multi-talented extraordinaire Jay Chou once asked for her number and that she has taken a ride on his 'Batmobile' before.

Now, Honey claims that she has also been in Jay's "secret room" in his office located at Chang Chun road. The small-time model tried to hint at their special relationship when she revealed that they had fun in the secret room, and said that the ceiling was decorated with stars and ambient lighting.

Jay responded to the model's tale on 100% Entertainment a few days ago and said, "Originally it was okay watching her talk about doing magic, but the news reports are overly exaggerated. I'm happy that it helps people. But please do not go out of hand and speculate."

Bianca Bai affects 'Sonia and Blue' relationship, prepared for public hate

Bianca Bai and Sonia Sui both fall in love with Blue Lan in the TTV and SETTV idol drama "PS Man". This week, Blue will confess his love for Sonia, leading to a confrontation by the leading ladies, and the resulting decision by Sonia to back out of the competition. Bianca says, "I'm scared that after this episode airs, the audience will start hating me again."


The Taiwan Flora Expo initially provided the premises for the film crew, and when the "PS Man" crew entered at noon on the 21st to get scenic shots, Xiao Xiao Bin was ecstatic. He played around with the flower mascots and had a lot of fun; upon seeing this Blue said, "When younger children see the flower mascots it's like they forget everything, and drop what they are doing to go play with them."

Google Music Store a 'Capability,' Google Says

Almost lost in the announcement of Google TV on Thursday was the small but very real discussion of Google's music services.

On one hand, Google said it will be able to stream all of a user's music stored on a PC to an Android phone - as long as the PC is powered up and connected to the Internet.

But Google also showed music as one of the types of content that could be purchased in an Android App Store and sent to the phone or to other devices. So does this mean that Google plans to launch a music store in the near future?

Not so fast, said Vic Gundotra, the vice president of engineering for Google. "We just focus on delivering better apps for the user," he said during a press conference following the keynote address at the Google I/O developer conference here. "Over time, you'll see that strategy more broadly unfold."

Firefox trumps Chrome in 'active' user gains, Mozilla director argues

Counters Web metrics data that points to stall in Firefox's growth

Firefox is beating Google's Chrome where it counts, in the number of users running each browser, a Mozilla executive argued Thursday.

Asa Dotzler, Mozilla's director of community development, made the case that Firefox's growth is not lagging behind Chrome's, as data from multiple Web metrics companies has indicated for the last six months.

According to measurement vendors like California-based NetApplications, Chrome's browser usage share gains now regularly outpace those of Firefox. In April, NetApplications' data had Chrome adding 0.6 of a percentage point of share while Firefox added only 0.07 of a percentage point, or just over an eighth as much.

Over the last 12 months, Chrome added 4.8 percentage points of usage share by NetApplications' reckoning; Firefox added 0.8 of a percentage point in the same period, again one-eighth as much.

Dotzler sees it differently.

Rather than measure usage share -- which in NetApplications' case is based on a month's unique visitors to the sites it monitors for clients -- Dotzler argued that a more accurate metric is the number of "active" users.

Kendra Wilkinson Is Vivid Entertainment’s New Best-Selling Celebrity Sex Star

Move over, Kim. Take a backseat, Paris. Kendra Wilkinson is gold at the XXX-rated box office. Word is the former “Girl Next Door’s” saucy sex tape is already the fast-selling in the history of porn distributor Vivid. According to TMZ.com, the pre-sale orders for Kendra’s sex tape are the biggest the company’s ever seen.


FYI — Vivid has a long history of exposing celebrities who masquerade as aspiring porn stars. The studio infamously unleashed sex tapes starring Shauna Sand, Jessica Sierra, Kim Kardashian, and Paris Hilton.

Robert Pattinson vs.Taylor Lautner: Who Are You Buying?

Well, this should settle the whole Team Edward vs. Team Jacob thing once and for all, right?


People has decided to release their special Twilight issue with slightly different covers, thereby forcing folks to figure out which copy they should purchase. Will they choose the one featuring a smiley Robert Pattinson or the one with a much more serious-looking Taylor Lautner? Of course, those running the mag no doubt hope such a choice will just be too difficult to deal with and Twi-hards will simply break down and buy both.

Shipping HTC EVO 4G ROM released into the wild


Can't wait to get your hands on an EVO 4G? Then it looks like you can now at least settle for the next best thing that's not actually anything like the real thing: the final, shipping version of the EVO 4G ROM. That's just been released into the wild courtesy of Conflipper, and is ready to be downloaded for use however you like -- and at your own risk, of course. Hit up the source link below for the download link, and let us know in comments if you manage to work any magic with it.

Nokia, Yahoo to unveil “Project Nike” collaboration on May 24

Yahoo sent out an invite for an event that will take place on Monday (May 24) in New York. The company is about to announce something related to “providing global consumers with rich online and mobile experiences, and bringing forward a new era in keeping consumers connected.”


According to All Things Digital, the upcoming Yahoo event will unveil a deal with Nokia. Reportedly called “Project Nike” (nothing to do with the sportswear brand), the collaboration will bring Yahoo search, email and other services to select Nokia devices.

Some (or maybe all, I’m not sure here) Nokia S40 phones already use Yahoo services like Yahoo Go and Yahoo Ready.

Apple Office Goodbye the “Get a Mac” ad campaign


The deed is done…Apple has finally killed off the “Get a Mac” ad campaign. Nowhere to be found on its website, all of the roads that once led to the ads featuring Justin Long and John Hodgman redirect visitors to a page entitled “Why You’ll Love a Mac.” Curiously enough, the “Why You’ll Love a Mac” pages feature basically the same talking points that the TV spots went over ad nauseum. What Apple has planned next is unclear, but let’s hope it actually shows the product in use and doesn’t just go over tired old clichés that only appeal to smug Apple fanboys that suffer from confirmation bias.

Leo Ku was invited to perform a 3D concert in Las Vegas

Leo Ku will be staging his 3D concert at the Holiday Inn Hotel in Las Vegas Mandalay on May 29. He has invited Sherman Chung as his special guest too. Leo will be leaving Hong Kong on May 26 with 30 stage crew members.


As this is Las Vegas first 3D concert, the organization has arranged a few thousand 3D glasses to be used in the concert. The audience will enjoy a brand new experience with 3D visual effect. Leo did not plan to do this concert originally, but following the invitation from the hotel and the record company has also bought his copy right back, he has agreed to give it a go. The record company also made a lot of promotion for his coming concert. They put up a giant TV screen in Wanchai Hennessy Road displaying his forth coming concert in Las Vegas. That has attracted a lot of enquiries from the fans about his concert.

Maggie Cheung and boyfriend attended a function hand in hand


Maggie Cheung and her architect boy friend Ole Scheeren attended an art exhibition in Shanghai yesterday. They were seen holding hands and appeared very much in love. Recently there was a report saying that they have split up. Maggie has proved them wrong by showing the media that she is still in a loving relationship with Ole.

Adam Lambert Comes Down with Slight Case of Bieber Fever

Uh-oh. It's continuing to spread.


In a new interview with OK! Weekly, Adam Lambert is the latest celebrity to admit: I've got a case of Bieber fever.

This infliction doesn't seem as dramatic as other verified outbreaks, as Lambert responded to a question about watching Justin Bieber perform at last Sunday's Wango Tango concert and said:

“I have to say I’m sorry I missed it. I met him before at a couple radio shows, he’s a really nice kid. He’s really friendly and he’s funny... He’s obviously worked really hard. I know adolescent girls are loving him. Good for him.”

Lindsay Lohan Cocaine Photos?


Cocaine, Blohan, and Butt Cracks — Oh My!

It appears the “perfectly clean and sober” trainwreck formerly known as screen star Lindsay Lohan will have to pull a pretty impressive excuse out of her dime bag to explain newly-released photos, which appear to show LiLo — cut straw in hand — nuzzling beside what looks mysteriously like a plate of blow.

1-in-5 U.S. consumers plan to buy Apple's iPad

Current owners report satisfaction numbers in the 'nose-bleed' range, says pollster

Positive press and word of mouth from very satisfied owners has convinced one-in-five U.S. consumers to buy an Apple iPad, a survey published today said.

In a poll of nearly 3,400 consumers, ChangeWave Research found that 7% are "very likely," and 13% "somewhat likely" to buy an iPad at some point. Those numbers, noted Paul Carton, ChangeWave's research director, are significantly higher than the 4% and 9% who answered the same way in a February survey taken after Apple CEO Steve Jobs had unveiled the media tablet, but before it went on sale in early April.

While 19% of those who plan to purchase an iPad said that they would do so in the next 90 days, the majority of consumers who want an Apple tablet will buy one in six months or more. And that has to make Apple happy this holiday season.

"Apple's going to have an iPad holiday," said Carton. "We'll see a holiday spending wave on the iPad."

Nexus One Android 2.2 update imminent; HTC Sense versions in 2H 2010

Google weren’t shy about confirming Android 2.2 Froyo’s star features at Google IO yesterday, but definitive timescales about when Android-addicts (other than developers) could actually get their hands on the OS were in short supply. That’s beginning to slowly change, with the official Google IO Twitter account announcing that the Nexus One would get Froyo in the “next few weeks“. As for other manufacturers, so far only HTC have stepped up with their plan.


“If your phone was launched this year, we will most likely offer an upgrade for it to the Froyo version. This includes popular models like the Desire and Droid Incredible as well as hotly anticipated phones like the Evo 4G, MyTouch slide and upcoming models. We will announce a full list of phones and dates once we are closer to launching the upgrades. We are working closely with Google and our other partners to ensure we have the earliest access to everything we need to provide a complete and solid Sense experience on Froyo. We expect to release all updates in the second half of this year but can’t be more specific yet.” HTC

Megan Fox Replaced by Katie Cassidy?

MEGAN Fox has already been replaced!

Movie insiders say Katie Cassidy — the 23-year-old daughter of ’70s pop star David Cassidy — is the hot favorite play Shia LaBeouf’s love interest in Transformers 3.

Fox recently quit the project and director Michael Bay is apparently keen to work with Cassidy.

“Michael worked with Katie on A Nightmare On Elm Street and he sees her as the perfect choice,” a source said.

“Megan was unknown when she was cast in the first Transformers and Katie is in that same mold.

“She even looks a little like Megan — only blonde.”

YG Entertainment plays down talk that G-Dragon elbowed Seungri


There was an explosion of interest among fans after a video snippet of Big Bang’s Shouting Korea video with Kim Yuna was uploaded on the 21st.

The snippet titled “G-Dragon beating Seungri” had showed Seungri sitting just behind G-Dragon as they acted out a cheering scene. But amidst the excitement, Seungri accidentally hit G-Dragon and this resulted in the latter shooting him an annoyed look and elbowing him back twice.

So is TVB doing a good job or not? (Part 1 in a series of articles)

Throughout the years, there has been frequent criticism toward TVB – besides the concerns about how the station handles its news programs, the biggest complaint by far is TVB’s lack of creativity and lack of consistent progress (improvement).

So is TVB doing a bad job? In comparisons to other local (Hong Kong) TV stations, they are actually doing quite well – or perhaps the blame should be placed on the other local stations for doing so poorly.

For the past few decades, TVB has owned over 80% of the Hong Kong television audience pool. Every year, the station has at least one (if not more) highly rated and highly acclaimed series, plus a bunch of game shows and variety shows with a huge audience following – for a local TV station, it has already achieved a certain level of ‘success’ in satisfying basic audience needs.

Cannes Festival 2010: Mischa Barton holds her own among the A-listers in feathered gown

Her blonde ringlets cascading down her back, white train flowing behind, Mischa Barton looks ready for the ball.

The 24-year-old has been doing the rounds of the cocktail parties at the Cannes Film Festival in recent days.


But last night she outdid herself as she attended the amFar ball at the glamorous Hotel du Cap during the Cannes Film Festival.

The neckline of her white gown was decorated with a circle of white feathers, while the waist was accentuated with a black ribbon belt.

Breaking Kendra Wilkinson Video Details: Orgies, Lesbians and Sex Toys! & more

Some time in 2003, Justin Frye broke out his tripod and filmed he and then-girlfriend Kendra Wilkinson having sex.

He then solid the video to Vivid Entertainment for $100,000. This much we know. This much we've seen (yikes!). But new details have emerged, and they shed light on even more graphic details from the sex tape.

Or, should we say, sex tapes?!? According to Radar Online, Kendra made at least one other video back in the day. It featured her and a woman named Taryn, as sources say "multiple partners are featured having intimate relations with the reality television star" on camera.

If you're reading this right now, Hank Baskett, we're very sorry. But are you really surprised?

For now, Vivid plans to release Kendra Exposed on May 28. Like any mainstream film, its success would lead to a sequel that stars Kendra and a "scantily-clad woman who is wearing skimpy lingerie."

Don't shed any tears for Wilkinson if/when either of these tapes go public: she has struck a deal in which she earns 50% of all sales. We're talking seven figures, easy! In fact, the only thing easier than earning this money:

iPhone 3G's Android port is ready to download


Had enough Android excitement yet? Of course not. Following up on the Froyo release yesterday, we've got the no less vital news that the iPhone 3G port of Android is now ready to download and install. Having shown off Google's OS running on a 3G two weeks ago, author David Wang has clearly had to iron out a few kinks before serving up the necessary binaries, but here they are now, replete with a handy install guide he's penned over at PC World. Time to get yourself on the dual-booting bandwagon, no?

Won Bin and Shin Min Ah share a kiss for Maxim T.O.P


Popular actor Won Bin recently got together with beautiful actress Shin Min Ah to endorse Maxim Coffee’s espresso product line called T.O.P (no relation to Big Bang).

The CF is pretty cute albeit corny, it features Won Bin and Shin Min Ah walking when they’re confronted by Won Bin’s cute lady friend. Won Bin is surprised to see her and asks her, “When did you come back into town?” The lady friend then asks Won Bin, “Who’s this? Is this your girlfriend? You’re looking hotter these days.” Won Bin replies, “If you’re regular coffee than Shin Min Ah is my T.O.P!” They then share a long kiss and Shin Min Ah says that Won Bin did a good job.

Check out the CF and photos below.

Justin Bieber Hires Taylor Lautner’s Personal Trainer

Biebster wants to bulk up! We hear teen sensation Justin Bieber has hired Hollywood power trainer Jordan Yuam to help him sculpt his scrawny frame. A devoted Twilight fan, Biebs was impressed with how quickly Jordan helped fellow showbiz hottie Taylor Lautner transform his boyish bod into a mass of hulking muscles — and he’s certain that with the trainer’s help, a six pack is just a few crunches away.


“Justin’s positive he has the intensity and focus to get the same results as Taylor. He’s already a megastar at 16 — now he wants the physique to go with it,” a Bieber tipster tells The National Enquirer. “He wants ripped abs, bulging biceps, and cut thighs.”

Where does she get the energy? Madonna, 51, keeps up with clubbers half her age in London

At 51, she could be forgiven for preferring nights in on the couch with a cup of cocoa.


But Madonna proved aged hasn't wearied her as he hit London hot spot Aura last night.

The energetic singer and mother of four mingled with party-goers half her age at the Piccadilly venue until the early hours of this morning.

She did her best to pull together a youthful ensemble which included jack boots, shorts and a shredded leather jacket.

She went all out with accessories too, trimming her look with a trilby hat, one black glove and sunglasses.

The bizarre outfit was yet another clear indication the Queen of Pop has no plans to grow old gracefully.

HP: no webOS netbooks, HP Slate due October 2010

HP’s confirmation that it would be putting webOS into tablets and even printers was happily received, but anyone looking forward to a webOS-based netbook should think again. According to Monty Wong, vice president of the personal computing systems group at HP Taiwan, netbooks are too like mainstream computers to make them appropriate for webOS, and as such the company has no plans to develop them. Meanwhile he also had some news on the HP Slate.


Wong says that the HP Slate – DigiTimes have capitalised the name, which leads us to presume they (and the HP VP) are referring to the original Windows 7 based tablet, rather than a webOS based machine – will arrive on the market by the end of October 2010. He’s also predicting a “wide range of software and application support” in time for that launch.

Nokia N8 hits Amazon preorder

Nokia’s N8 smartphone has shown up for preorder on Amazon Germany, with the handset listed at €469.50 ($587) though with no estimated release date. No surprises with the hardware specifications, so we’re still expecting the same 12-megapixel autofocus camera, 720p HD video recording and HDMI output.


Nokia themselves have only committed to a Q3 2010 launch, and the MRSP – that admittedly excludes taxes – was lower than Amazon Germany are asking too, at €370. Still, we’re guessing that carriers will be offering it from free with a new contract, so if you’re not feeling flush you’ll still be able to get your hands on the Symbian^3 handset.

"Scream 4" Lures "Twilight" and "Heroes" Vets

"Twilight" actress Ashley Greene, "Heroes" starlet Hayden Panettiere, and Rory Culkin ("Twelve") are mulling offers for key starring roles in "Scream 4," which is heading toward a July start date.


The Dimension Films project reunites director Wes Craven with writer Kevin Williamson, who kicked off a horror-movie revival with his "Scream" script in 1996.

The story brings back original cast members Neve Campbell, David Arquette and Courteney Cox, though the new flick is seen as a passing of the baton to a new generation of slasher victims, with Williamson already under contract to write a fifth installment.

If deals are concluded, Greene would play Campbell's cousin Jill, essentially the heroine of the movie, and Panettiere would play her best friend, a nerdy film geek. Culkin would play a potential love interest for Jill.

Lake Bell ("It's Complicated") is negotiating to play a police officer who knew Sidney (Campbell) from high school.

Casting is proceeding slowly because Craven and Dimension are not sending the script to agencies in order to protect its secrecy. With only character descriptions, actors are having a difficult time deciding whether certain roles are for them.

Lindsay Lohan Parties Until 7:30 A.M. After Warrant Issued for Arrest

Lindsay Lohan didn't seem too bothered that a judge issued a warrant for her arrest Thursday.

The actress, 23, partied all night in Cannes.

She arrived at the VIP Room at 4 a.m., where she was overheard telling partygoers she will fly back to the states Friday. She was slated to attend Russell Crowe’s Artists for Peace & Justice event there, but showed up after all the celebs — including Gerard Butler — had long left.

Lohan and a few pals then moved the fete to a private yacht, where Lohan was spotted leaving at 7:30 a.m. A friend covered her head with a jacket as she climbed into a black-out Mercedes.

The arrest warrant for Lohan was rescinded Thursday night after she posted a $10,000 bail bond. A hearing is scheduled for Monday at 8:30 a.m. to determine if Lohan violated the probation terms from her 2007 DUI conviction. If so, she faces 180 days in jail.

Lohan claims her father Michael "had someone" steal her passport, which stranded her in Cannes and caused her to miss the hearing.

Jesse James: I Threw Away an Amazing Marriage

Jesse James breaks down in tears as he finally speaks publicly about the demise of his marriage to Sandra Bullock.

"I took a pretty amazing life and marriage ... and threw it away," James says in a promo clip of his interview with ABC News' Nightline, scheduled to air Tuesday night.

James, 41, admits to cheating on Bullock and says his actions – including allegations of affairs with multiple women – have made him "The most hated man in the world.” At one point, he’s so overcome by emotion, he walks away from the interview.

Since the couple’s split, James has spent time in a rehab program and has otherwise maintained a normal schedule at his Los Angeles-area home, where he's often been seen driving his kids to school.

HTC Vision to be a Desire-like Android smartphone with QWERTY keyboard?

For some reason, all of HTC’s latest high-end Android smartphones (HTC Desire, HTC Incredible, HTC EVO 4G) come without a hardware keyboard.


But fret not, QWERTY fans, as HTC is apparently readying a Desire-like handset that will also include a sliding keyboard. Codenamed HTC Vision, this upcoming smartphone has a WVGA touchscreen display and, according to Tweakers.net, its UA profile is similar to the one of the HTC Desire (save for the already-mentioned presence of a hardware keyboard).

Details on the availability of the HTC Vision are basically nonexistent at the moment, but the handset might be announced pretty soon – maybe running Android 2.2 from the start.

Google Pac-Man logo is retro-awesome

Google have rolled out their latest custom logo, and it’s perhaps their best to date. Celebrating the 30th birthday of the original Pac-Man, they’ve recreated the iconic game in a playable logo complete with audio and even a two-player mode.


To start play, hit the “Insert Coin” button (where “I’m feeling lucky” normally is to be found) and then use the arrow keys to move Pac-Man about. Hit the button again and you get Mrs Pac-Man too, controlled by the WASD keys.

Best of all, the Pac-Man logo isn’t coded in Flash so it’s playable on your iPhone, your iPad and on other smartphone browsers that don’t support the Adobe technology. We’ve tried it on an iPad and a Google Nexus One, and you can control Pac-Man by tapping the screen to change direction. Google say it’ll be available for play for the next 48hrs.

BlackBerry Bold 9800 slider breaks cover to flaunt WebKit browser

RIM’s BlackBerry Bold 9800 slider has shown up in the wild again, and this time it’s showing off a little more of the company’s work in BlackBerry OS 6. The WebKit engine is apparently heavily integrated into the new OS, and here it makes an appearance scoring a full 100/100 in the Acid3 browser test.


That’s handy, because the BlackBerry browser right now is somewhat lacking in comparison to what’s available on other platforms. The photos – courtesy of The Cellular Guru – also confirm that it uses a touchscreen display along with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard; that ‘board is apparently the same as you’d find on the BlackBerry 9700.

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